|
(134340) Pluto |
| ephemeris |
date |
magn |
radius |
delta |
ra |
dec |
elong |
phase |
| Today | 12 Jan 2026 | 15.1 | 35.429 AU | 36.391 AU | 20h23m | -23°13' | 11.9° | 0.3° |
| Opposition | 26 Jul 2026 | 14.9 | 35.564 AU | 34.551 AU | 20h29m | -23°25' | 175.7° | 0.1° |
(134340) Pluto - 2026-01-12
astro.vanbuitenen.nl
The interactive orbit chart above shows the body's path through the solar system and its position at the given date.
Green and blue lines are shown perpendicular to the ecliptic plane: Green if the path is above the ecliptic plane, blue if it is below.
(Left-click and drag to rotate the view; Right-click and drag to move the view; Use scroll wheel to zoom in our out.)
The orbital elements of Pluto are:
e (Eccentricity) : 0.2470716
a (Semimajor axis) : 39.3398536
i (Inclination) : 17.17579
Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 110.33624
ω (Argument of perihelion) : 113.17584
M (Mean anomaly) : 53.10668
Epoch : 2025 Nov 21
L (Longitude of perihelion) : 44.47266
B (Latitude of perihelion) : 15.75198
P (Orbital period in years) : 246.75
The light curve chart below shows the estimated development of the minor planet's magnitude.
The all-sky chart below shows the path of the minor planet over the same period as the light curve. The current position is marked yellow.
The following chart shows the path of the minor planet in the next few days. The field of view is optimized for (~10x50) binoculars and finderscopes.
Ephemerides:
Date Time RA (2000) DEC (2000) delta radius elong phase PA magn
2026-01-12 00:00 UT 20 23 40.1 -23 13 54 36.391 35.429 11.9 0.3 95 15.1
2026-01-12 06:33 UT 20 23 42.3 -23 13 47 36.392 35.429 11.6 0.3 95 15.1
2026-01-13 00:00 UT 20 23 48.1 -23 13 31 36.395 35.430 11.0 0.3 96 15.1
2026-01-14 00:00 UT 20 23 56.2 -23 13 08 36.398 35.430 10.0 0.3 98 15.1
2026-01-15 00:00 UT 20 24 04.3 -23 12 45 36.402 35.431 9.1 0.3 101 15.1
2026-01-16 00:00 UT 20 24 12.4 -23 12 22 36.405 35.432 8.2 0.2 104 15.1
2026-01-17 00:00 UT 20 24 20.5 -23 11 59 36.408 35.432 7.4 0.2 107 15.1
2026-01-18 00:00 UT 20 24 28.7 -23 11 36 36.410 35.433 6.6 0.2 112 15.1
2026-01-19 00:00 UT 20 24 36.9 -23 11 13 36.412 35.434 5.8 0.2 117 15.1
2026-01-20 00:00 UT 20 24 45.0 -23 10 50 36.414 35.435 5.1 0.1 125 15.0
2026-01-21 00:00 UT 20 24 53.2 -23 10 27 36.416 35.435 4.5 0.1 134 15.0
2026-01-22 00:00 UT 20 25 01.4 -23 10 05 36.417 35.436 4.0 0.1 146 15.0
2026-01-23 00:00 UT 20 25 09.6 -23 09 42 36.418 35.437 3.8 0.1 160 15.0
2026-01-24 00:00 UT 20 25 17.7 -23 09 20 36.419 35.437 3.8 0.1 175 15.0
2026-01-25 00:00 UT 20 25 25.9 -23 08 57 36.420 35.438 4.1 0.1 188 15.0
2026-01-26 00:00 UT 20 25 34.1 -23 08 35 36.420 35.439 4.6 0.1 200 15.0
2026-01-27 00:00 UT 20 25 42.3 -23 08 13 36.420 35.439 5.2 0.1 209 15.0
2026-01-28 00:00 UT 20 25 50.4 -23 07 51 36.419 35.440 5.9 0.2 216 15.1
2026-01-29 00:00 UT 20 25 58.6 -23 07 29 36.419 35.441 6.7 0.2 222 15.1
2026-01-30 00:00 UT 20 26 06.8 -23 07 07 36.418 35.441 7.5 0.2 226 15.1
2026-01-31 00:00 UT 20 26 14.9 -23 06 45 36.416 35.442 8.4 0.2 229 15.1
2026-02-01 00:00 UT 20 26 23.0 -23 06 24 36.415 35.443 9.2 0.3 232 15.1
2026-02-02 00:00 UT 20 26 31.1 -23 06 02 36.413 35.443 10.1 0.3 234 15.1
2026-02-03 00:00 UT 20 26 39.2 -23 05 41 36.411 35.444 11.1 0.3 236 15.1
2026-02-04 00:00 UT 20 26 47.3 -23 05 20 36.408 35.445 12.0 0.3 238 15.1
2026-02-05 00:00 UT 20 26 55.3 -23 04 59 36.406 35.446 12.9 0.4 239 15.1
2026-02-06 00:00 UT 20 27 03.4 -23 04 38 36.403 35.446 13.9 0.4 241 15.1
2026-02-07 00:00 UT 20 27 11.4 -23 04 18 36.399 35.447 14.8 0.4 242 15.1
2026-02-08 00:00 UT 20 27 19.3 -23 03 57 36.396 35.448 15.8 0.4 242 15.1
2026-02-09 00:00 UT 20 27 27.3 -23 03 37 36.392 35.448 16.7 0.5 243 15.1
2026-02-10 00:00 UT 20 27 35.2 -23 03 17 36.388 35.449 17.7 0.5 244 15.1
2026-02-11 00:00 UT 20 27 43.1 -23 02 57 36.383 35.450 18.6 0.5 245 15.1
Terminology:
delta: distance between minor planet and earth in AU
radius: distance between minor planet and sun in AU
magn: magnitude (brightness) estimate
ra: right ascension in hours (24h = 360deg)
dec: declination in degrees
elong: elongation in degrees (angle sun-earth-minor planet)
phase: phase angle in degrees (angle sun-minor planet-earth)
AU: Astronomical Unit (mean distance between earth and sun: 149597870.7 km
Orbital elements provided by the MPC (Minor Planet Center).
Calculations by a modified version of AAPlus, a C# implementation of the AA+ project by PJ Naughter from the algorithms presented in the book "Astronomical Algorithms" by Jean Meeus.
NGC2000 dso catalog and star labels from VizieR as provided by the Strasbourg astronomical Data Center.
Tycho2 catalog from the ESO archive.